Dear Anna Wintour, There’s No Such Thing as ‘Migrant Chic’

If you Google the phrase “migrant crisis” today you’ll see various distressing headlines: “Sicily Flooded by 2,000 Migrants Every Day From Libya After Balkans Route Shut,” “Pope Francis to Visit Greek Camp Holding Migrants in ‘Inhumane’ Conditions,” and, though not anywhere near as perturbing as the former, ones to the effect of “Anna Wintour Calls Kanye’s Yeezy Season 3 ‘Migrant Chic,’ Stuns Us All With Her Lack of Insight.” (Insert *rubbing our temples* emoji here.)

The fashion matriarch’s faux pas came during her recent TV interview with Late Night with Seth Meyers. In the midst of an otherwise smirk-inducing, down-to-Earth description of her experience getting lost and subsequently brought to tears by the labyrinth that is Madison Square Garden, the Condé Nast creative director unwittingly revealed her capacity for human error.

“I got there very early, as I tend to do. They put me in this huge VIP section and I was the only person sitting there for about half an hour,” Wintour shared with Seth. “Eventually they did turn up and the Life of Pablo concert started and the migrant chic fashion show started and they were both wonderful. But on the way out I was lost there for half an hour, asking various people to let me out […] I was really in tears.” If you think finding your way out of a sports stadium is hard, try uprooting your family to flee political persecution.

Image: Imaxtree

True, the muted, minimal, village-like set of Yeezy 3 was clearly a nod to those in poverty or meant to evoke visions of a post-apocalyptic community (not that the custom Balmain clad Kardashians supported any kind of larger political message, but we digress). However, a woman whose made her name in the fashion editorial industry could surely have picked a better choice of words. To pair the terms “migrant” and “chic” makes light of a tragic, pressing global issue. It’s as if Zoolander’s Mugatu was playing ventriloquist with the renowned businesswoman.

Needless to say, the Twittersphere is up in arms, calling Wintour callous, clueless, vapid and the like.

(Kanye Twitter rant to follow.)

Here’s hoping Anna removes her Manolo-clad foot from her mouth in the very near future — we can’t bring ourselves to pick up an issue of Vogue until she’s made it clear she’s picked up a newspaper. 

UPDATE: Anna Wintour has responded with the following apology: “I apologize if my remark was offensive in any way. The migrant crisis is real, and I didn’t intend to trivialize that issue.”

[ via The Telegraph ]